Wahab Hameed, an alleged member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was placed into EFCC custody by the Ikeja Division of the Lagos High Court on Wednesday. He is accused of plotting and buying votes in the 2023 presidential and legislative elections, among other offences.
Nan reports that the judge, Ismail Ijelu, who oversaw the proceedings, remanded the defendant following his guilty plea to two counts that involved allegations of bribery and conspiracy. The EFCC preferred these allegations against him.
For the purpose of reviewing the facts and ruling, the trial has been postponed until December 7.
Hameed, who claimed he could neither speak nor understand English or pidgin, requested that the charges be read to him in Yoruba.
Samuel Daji, the prosecutor for the EFCC, told the court that on February 25, Hameed and Segun Ijitola—another suspect who is currently at large—hatched a plot to buy votes in the 2023 presidential and national assembly elections. The alleged offence happened at Surulere’s Unit 28 of the Gbaja Girls Junior High School.
Daji claims that the defendant and his accomplice violated provisions 121 (1) and (5) as well as 121 (1) and 1 (3) of the Electoral Act, 2022, by bribing voters at Unit 28. Daji asked for a brief postponement in light of the defendant’s guilty plea so that the EFCC could polish the case facts before a review.
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Olabiyi Ademola, the defence attorney, consented to a brief postponement until December 7 and asked the court to keep the defendant in the custody of the EFCC.